Terms of Service

These terms govern your use of Village Memory at villagememory.org and its family-history tools. By creating an account or using the service, you agree to these terms. If you do not agree, do not use the service.

Village Memory is a free, ad-free side project operated by Silvio Giancola, an individual based in Saudi Arabia. It is intended for people he knows in Saudi Arabia, France, Italy and elsewhere. No subscription or service fee is currently charged. Sponsored GPT-6 Luna has no user fee, but uses a shared allowance and monthly budget; access may pause when either limit is reached. You can choose another AI option in Settings.

Who may use the service

You must be legally able to enter into an agreement where you live to create an account. You are responsible for keeping your sign-in methods secure and for activity performed through your account. Tell us promptly if you believe someone has accessed it without permission.

Your family information

You keep your rights to information and material you submit. You give Village Memory permission to host, store, display, back up, and process that material only as needed to provide, protect, and improve the service, including the features you choose. This permission ends when the material is removed, subject to backups, shared contributions, and legal or security retention requirements described in the Privacy Policy.

You are responsible for the information you add. Only submit information you have the right or lawful basis to use. Respect the privacy and rights of living relatives, obtain consent where required, and take extra care with children’s or sensitive information. Do not submit unlawful, misleading, or infringing content.

Private and Shared Trees

My Private Tree is visible only to you. A Shared Tree is visible to its members. When you contribute to a Shared Tree, other members of that tree may view and use the contribution within that tree. An invitation grants access according to the role shown in the invitation. Do not invite people or add their information unless you are authorized to do so.

AI-assisted features

Ask and Tell may use local models on your device or an online provider you select. AI output can be incomplete or incorrect. It is a proposal for human review, not a verified fact, professional advice, or a substitute for checking original sources. You remain responsible for reviewing any information before adding it to a tree.

When you submit Ask or Analyze with sponsored GPT-6 Luna selected, your request and relevant saved tree context are sent to OpenAI. The notice beside the form explains the transfer; pressing submit is consent for that request. Relevant context is sent to another online provider you explicitly select, under that provider’s terms and privacy practices. Sponsored AI has no user fee, but its shared daily allowance or monthly budget may make it unavailable. If you supply your own provider key, you are responsible for that provider account and any charges it incurs. See the Privacy Policy for details.

Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• use the service in violation of law or another person’s rights;
• attempt to access accounts, trees, or systems without permission;
• interfere with, disrupt, or circumvent service security;
• upload malware or use the service to harass, threaten, or defraud; or
• misrepresent AI-generated or unverified material as established fact.

Exports, offline copies, and third parties

You are responsible for protecting GEDCOM exports and offline copies stored on your devices. The service also relies on third-party providers, and some features may be unavailable if those providers are unavailable or change their services. Their terms apply to your use of their services.

Changes, suspension, and termination

We may change or discontinue features and may suspend access when reasonably necessary to protect users, comply with law, or respond to a material breach of these terms. You may stop using the service and request account deletion by contacting us. Some information may remain in backups or records where required or permitted by law.

Service availability and liability

Village Memory is provided on an evolving basis. To the extent allowed by applicable law, we do not guarantee uninterrupted availability or that the service will be error-free. Nothing in these terms excludes liability or consumer rights that cannot legally be excluded or limited where you live.

Changes to these terms

We may update these terms as the service changes. We will update the effective date above when a revised version is published. Continued use after a revision takes effect means you accept the revised terms to the extent permitted by law.

Contact

Village Memory is operated by Silvio Giancola, based in Saudi Arabia. Questions about these terms can be sent to silvio.giancola@gmail.com. Applicable law and mandatory consumer protections depend on where you live; these terms do not remove those protections.